Erik in Termina
by Flagger
Summary: Erik from Phantom of the Opera gets sent to Termina when a stanger the Skull Kid corners him in a dark alley. How will this turn out? Read to find out. Rated T for violence and a bit of language. Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

Erik ran down the secret passageway behind one of his large mirrors, leaving the angry mob far behind him. He didn't think that they would be able to find this passageway, but he figured that he should make haste just in case they did. He wasn't in the mood to deal with them. In fact, he knew that if he had stayed, he would already be dead. They would have shot him as soon as they saw him.

He continued along the passageway until he reached a ladder that led to the Parisian streets above. He climbed up it quickly and found himself in a dark alleyway. Even though his eyes were well adjusted to darkness—like a cat's—he could barely make out the details of the alley. He paused for a moment to look around, frustrated by his inability to see. Finally, he managed to make out a figure in front of him.

The figure was oddly shaped, to say the least. Its arms and legs were no more than twigs, its head the shape of a heart with ten spikes sticking out of it—two on the top, four on each of it's sides. Erik was startled by this. This person must have been wearing a mask. _Like me, _Erik reflected. The figure stopped what it was doing when it saw Erik standing there. It surveyed him for a second before shaking its head rapidly, an odd rattling noise coming from the mask.

Erik stared at it, unsure of what it was doing. Suddenly, Erik gasped as an intense pain shot through his entire body. He collapsed onto the ground, writhing silently. The figure watched him writhe for a moment with mild interest. The twin orange eyes of the mask glowed for a moment, forcing Erik to lose consciousness. Then, rattling its head again, it caused the area around it to turn even blacker—as if it were possible—and it vanished, taking the unconscious Erik with it.

Erik awoke hours later. He sat up, only to stop halfway when his head throbbed with pain. He layed back down and stared up at the sky, which was light. _I must have been out all night, _he thought. He continued to stare at the sky for a few moments before he noticed something that was very odd. _Is that the moon? _he asked himself. _Why is it so large and…it has a face! _Ignoring the pain in his head, he pulled himself up to his feet. The moon was very large in the sky, and it did appear to have a face: two large orange and yellow eyes, a nose, and a large, grinning mouth. _What the hell? _

He looked around him and gasped. He wasn't in that alleyway anymore. Instead, he was in a large grassy field. You'd think he would have noticed the fact that he was laying in an open field of grass immediately…

He looked around, slightly relieved when he saw a town a short distance away. He hated people as a rule, but he figured that he would endure them just long enough to find out where he was. Then he would leave. He started walking toward the town, taking no notice of the strange birds that were flying overhead. They, however, took notice of him and tried to dive-bomb him as they flew by. Luckily, he was able to get out of their way before they flew into him.

"Crazy birds," he muttered under his breath, and continued walking. He was almost to the town when the grass gave way to dirt, and he stopped when he saw the oddest creatures that he had ever seen. They looked like rats, but they were far too large to be rats. They were roughly the size of a greyhound, and they had bombs on the end of their tails, which they held off the ground.

Cautiously, Erik made his way around the rats, but one of them spotted him. It gave a loud squeak and rushed at him, the bomb on its tail flashing ominously. Erik considered running, but the rat was fast enough to catch up to him even if he did. Instead, he pulled out his Punjab lasso and waited until the rat was in range of the deadly catgut cord. It was almost there when a small boy jumped between Erik and the rat. He had a shield raised, and the rat ran into it, bounced off, and landed twenty feet away, exploding as it hit the ground.

"You need to be more careful, sir," the boy said, turning to look at Erik. "Those Bombchus are dangerous." The boy was wearing a green tunic, brown boots, and a green cap that hung down his back. He had feathery blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He was still holding onto his shield, which was covered in strange markings which included a red bird and a triangle-like symbol. On his back, a sword rested in its sheath.

"Thank you," Erik said, eyeing the boy cautiously. The boy was eyeing his mask curiously, making Erik very uncomfortable. "May I ask who you are?"

"I'm Link," the boy responded without a moment's hesitation. "What's your name?" Erik hesitated before answering.

"My name is Erik," he said. "What exactly was that rat-like creature?"

"They're called Bombchus," Link responded with a small laugh. "I thought everyone around here knew about them. Everyone in the town does, at any rate." He thought for a moment. "You aren't from around here, are you?" Erik shook his head. "I'm not from around here, either. Hey! We should stick together!" Erik didn't think that was such a good idea. The boy looked like he was only eleven, and children his age were bound to be very curious, and he didn't want Link's curiosity to be focused upon his mask any time soon.

"I don't know about that," Erik responded, "but-" He was interrupted when a small winged creature flew out of the boy's cap.

"Come on!" it said. Its voice sounded feminine. "He's not that bad. Really." Erik stared at it. "It's rude to stare, you know," it said, disgruntled. Erik came to his senses…sort of.

"What the hell are you?" he asked. Link laughed.

"Don't tell me you haven't seen a fairy before!" he said, the laughter still evident in his voice.

"Fairy?" Erik repeated.

"Yup!" the fairy replied. "My name's Tatl. Nice to meetcha!" She looked up at the sun for a moment. "Link, we really need to get moving. It's nearly two." Link nodded.

"Late for something?" Erik asked. Link shook his head.

"You see the moon?" he asked. Erik nodded, giving the ominous moon a short glance. "It's going to fall in three days." Not what Erik expected to hear. He looked down at Link in shock.

"How is that possible? I understand that the planet's gravitation pull could cause that to happen, but the gravitational pull of the sun should balance that out. Besides, I can't imagine that the moon would even be close enough for that to be a possibility."

"Come again?" Tatl asked, confused.

"Never mind. It's too complicated to explain simply."

"We need to go," Link said. "You can come with us. More help would be welcome."

"Help with what, exactly?"

"We're going to stop the moon from falling." It was Erik's turn to be confused.

"How?"

"There are four temples here: one in the north, one in the south, one in the east, and one in the west. There is a guardian spirit that is trapped in each of those temples. If we set them free, they can stop the moon."

"You seem to have this all planned out," Erik commented. "Sorry, but I need to get back to Paris."

"I need to get back to my home, too," Link said. "I can't just leave these people to their doom. I have to help them."

"You and I are different in that respect," Erik said simply. "If people had the choice to help me, they wouldn't either." He turned to leave Link, but his next words stopped him in his tracts.

"I helped you." Erik turned back to the boy.

"You are unique in that manner, but I still can do nothing. You and your fairy are on your own." He started to walk away, and again Link's words stopped him.

"You can't leave. This place is not normal. It's impossible to leave in normal ways. You'd have to leave the same way you got in."

"You're saying that I'm stuck here and the moon will fall in three days?" Link nodded.

"I may not be able to pull this off in just three days. I may need to resort to…alternative means. If I used those means, it would mean that I never met you. I can try to explain this better if you would come with me, but we're wasting time just standing here. Please…" Erik nodded.

"I'll assume that you know where we're going. Lead the way." Link smiled and began walking toward a wooden archway on the other side of the field. When they got closer to it, Erik realized that they weren't heading to the archway, but towards a tree-lined path that was beside it.

"Be careful," Link warned as they reached a patch of tall grass.

"Of what?" he asked. He didn't have to wait long for the answer. It seemed that as soon as he had asked that something hit Erik hard in the side, causing him to stumble. His attacker—a venus fly trap-like plant with a long, thin stem—prepared to strike again, but Link cut its stem with his sword, killing it.

"Those," he replied. "You alright?" Erik nodded.

"What was that?" he asked.

"A Deku Baba," Link explained. "They have the element of surprise in places like this. Just keep yours ears open. They made clicking sounds before they attack." Erik nodded, reaching into his cloak for the Punjab Lasso. If another one of those things attacked him, he's pop its head off like a dandelion.

"You mentioned 'alternative means' before," Erik said. "Care to explain what you meant?"

"Well, not really 'alternative,'" Link explained. "They're the same thing, but with an extra step. See this?" Link pulled a blue object out of his pocket and handed it to Erik.

"It's an ocarina," he said. Link nodded and took it back from him.

"It's called the Ocarina of Time. It's magic. By playing a certain song on it, I can go back in time three days. By doing that, I can restart these three days if it seems that I will fail. But, when I do this, almost everything that I did during the previous three days is undone. All the people I met will no longer recognize me. It's a fair tradeoff, I think."

"That's why you wanted me to come with you, too," Erik said. "You didn't want us to never have met. Flattering, but unnecessary."

"It's a bit more than that," Link said. "You see, if I hadn't been there, that Bombchu would have killed you. I was trying to save your life."

"I'm not entirely defenseless, you know," Erik muttered. Link looked up at him.

"What weapons do you have?" he asked, curious.

"I have the Punjab Lasso," Erik explained. "I have a rapier, and I have a few good knives. And you?"

"A sword and shield, obviously. I also have some Deku Nuts, too." Erik looked at him quizzically. "They make a bright flash when I throw them. They're useful for distracting enemies." Link looked up at Erik. "I'd like to see you use the Punjab Lasso. I've never seen one used before."

"You'll see it, I'm sure." Link nodded. They walked out of the tall grass and onto the tree-lined path.

"This is the path leading to the Southern Swamp," Tatl explained. "We're heading for Woodfall, which is further into the swamp."

"Where exactly is it?" Link asked.

"By the Deku Palace," Tatl answered. They reached the edge of the swamp, and Erik spotted a boat sitting on the shore of the water.

"I'd assume that we're taking the boat," Erik said. Link looked over at the boat and nodded. They walked over to it and climbing in. As soon as they were inside it, it began to move through the water. Erik looked around, startled. "How?"

"We'll just have to trust it," Link said. "I doubt that it'll lead us wrong." Uncomfortable by the mysterious actions of the boat, Erik tried to distract himself by looking at the scenery, but it didn't help much.

"Nice place, huh?" Link asked, also looking around. Erik shrugged. "I was a bit surprised by the boat moving like that, too. Don't worry."

A few minutes later, Tatl noticed that something was wrong. "Uh, Link," she said, motioning toward the water. Link and Erik looked down at it, and Link gasped.

"It's…poisoned," Link said, noticing the purple tint to it. "That isn't good for any of the creatures here. They'll all die…" Erik nodded.

"It's regrettable, for sure," he said. Link glared at him.

"What do you mean, 'it's regrettable'?" he asked. "We have to get the poison out of this water!" Erik laughed.

"How do you suggest that we do that?"

"The water is probably because the guardian of the swamp is imprisoned," Tatl said. "If we free the guardian, like we came here to do, the water should be returned to normal." Link nodded.

"I see..." Erik said.

They didn't speak until the boat stopped outside of the Deku Palace. They got out of the boat, taking care not to step in the water, and walked up to the two guards in the entrance to the Palace.

"Halt!" the plant-like Deku on the right barked. "We don't allow outsiders in our Palace! Go away!" Erik glared at them.

"And what if we don't want to?" he asked, threateningly. The Dekus shuddered momentarily, but didn't change their minds.

"Don't try to threaten us!" the left one ordered. "We'll have you arrested!" Erik found this funny. He was about to respond sarcastically when Link stopped him.

"Alright. I understand that you don't want outsiders in your Palace, but can you tell us why?" he asked kindly.

"A monkey kidnapped our princess," the guards explained. "We don't trust outsiders anymore because of this."

"Why would a monkey want to kidnap your princess?" Tatl asked.

"We think that he wanted to eat her," they answered. "We don't know where she is now. She may even be dead...We know that she taught him the sacred song of the Deku Royal Family, the song that opens the temple in Woodfall, but we don't know why he wanted it."

"It's understandable that you wouldn't trust outsiders after that," Link said. "Thanks for your time." He walked out of sight of the guards, and Erik followed him.

"What was the point of that?" Erik asked. "I could have convinced them to let us in!"

"They would have arrested us," Link said. "Besides, we just learned some valuable information."

"For instance?"

"The temple opens when one plays the song of the Deku Royal Family," Link elaborated. "Plus, the monkey knows the song. All we have to do is sneak inside, talk to the monkey, and learn the song. Then, we can get into the temple."

"You'd make a great detective," Erik complimented.

"Thank you. I've had a lot of practice."

"How will we sneak into the temple?" Erik asked. Link grinned and pulled out a mask that looked like the face of a Deku.

"With this." Erik stared at it.

"Though I don't think the guards are that intelligent," Erik said, "they won't be fooled by that."

"You think so?" Link asked with a sly grin. He put on the mask. A few moments later, he was a Deku. Erik was shocked.

"How did you do that?" he asked. "A mask doesn't do that! It doesn't change your entire body! That's impossible!"

"Possible," Link said. His voice had changed to the high-pitched voice of a Deku. "Find a way in. I'll go inside and talk to the monkey." Link walked back to the front of the Palace, and the guards let him pass without argument. Erik sighed and surveyed the outside of the Palace for a way in. Eventually, he found a hole in the wall on the East side of the Palace.

As quickly and carefully as he could, he scaled the wall and reached the hole. Inside, he found a dark passageway that led into the Palace. He followed it until he reached a large, dimly lit room. As he grew nearer to it, he realized that it was the throne room. The monkey that the guards had spoken about was right outside of the passageway Erik was in, tied to a post.

Erik crept to the edge of the passageway and looked around the room. He saw Link speaking with the Deku King, but he couldn't make out what they were saying. A few seconds later, Link walked over to the cage.

"The King thinks that I killed the Princess," the monkey said to him. "I did nothing of the sort! We were at the Woodfall Temple and she was kidnapped by a monster! I told this to the Deku King, but he won't believe me. He wants to punish me for it!"

"I won't let them punish you if you are innocent," Link said. The monkey looked at him strangely.

"You aren't a Deku, are you?" Link shook his head.

"No. I'm not." He looked around briefly before continuing. "I need you to teach me the song that opens the temple."

"You want to go in there?" he asked. Link nodded. "If I teach you the song, will you save the Princess and bring her back here?" Again, Link nodded. "Alright then. Listen closely." The monkey hummed a short tune. Link took out a set of Deku pipes and played the melody after him. "That's the Sonata of Awakening. It awakens those who have fallen into a deep sleep. Use it to open the temple and save the Princess."

"I will." Link looked around again, noticing that the King and his servants were all staring in their direction.

"You heard that, right?" the King exclaimed. "That was the song of the Deku Royal Family! That proves that the monkey kidnapped the Princess! His punishment will commence at once!" The King's servants rushed forward and seized the monkey.

"Hurry! Save the Princess!" the monkey called to Link as they dragged him away.

"Time for you to go now, too," one of the servants said to Link, leading him to the door. Link went without argument. Erik, too, knew that it was time to go. He went back along the passageway and dropped back down to the ground outside of the Palace. He met Link back at the front.

"You heard all of that, right?" Link asked him when they met up.

"Indeed," Erik responded. "Where is Woodfall Temple?" Tatl flew out from under Link's hat.

"In Woodfall, which is over there," she said, indicating the entrance to a cave in front of the Palace.

"Alright, then," Link said. "Let's go."


	2. Chapter 2

Hello! It's been a while, hasn't it? I haven't been slacking off on writing this story. In fact, quite the opposite. This story is now, in full length, 38 pages long! And I just finished with the third temple! I'll update when I get a few reviews, so if you are reading this, please review. It is the way to get me to update so you can read more. I have the next four chapters all ready to go, so it's not like I'm going to run out any time soon, especially since I've been writing and planning a lot recently. I may actually finish this story. Wow. That'll be a first for me.

Disclaimer: I own NADDA. You got that? NADDA!

I've rambled enough, I think. Anyways, here's chapter two. . . .

* * *

Link led the way to the cave entrance and they went inside. The tunnel was short, and they saw a dark and gloomy swamp before them almost as soon as they had entered.

"This is Woodfall?" Erik asked. Link nodded.

"The water is poisoned here like it is outside," he said. "Watch your step." They made their way to a platform in the center of the swamp, having to avoid a few Hiploops (territorial beetles the size of a large dog) along the way.

"Where do we go now?" Erik asked once they had reached the platform. They were now surrounded by the discolored water on all sides but the one they came by. Link looked down at the floor of the platform. He walked forward a few steps so that he was standing in the center of a carving of a Deku. He then pulled out the Deku pipes and played the Sonata of Awakening. The notes echoed eerily across the swamp. For a few moments, nothing happened.

Suddenly, the platform began to shake. Erik looked around, startled. To his astonishment, a large stone temple was rising out of the water, a small bridge connecting the entrance to the platform they were standing on. "Woodfall Temple…" he whispered. Link nodded.

"Let's go," he said, beginning to walk across the bridge. Erik followed him. When they reached the entrance, Link walked in, motioning for Erik to follow him.

The inside of the temple was cold and dark. The only light was provided by two torches located at the opposite end of the room, where a door was barely visible. "Be careful," Link whispered to Erik as he took a few cautious steps forward. He paused, listening, and continued walking. Erik followed suit.

"There are two large spider-like creatures hanging from the ceiling by the door," Erik warned.

"How can you see them? It's too dark."

"My eyes are well accustomed to darkness." Link nodded approvingly.

"That's good." He carefully walked across the bridge, taking care to stay away from the edge. Erik followed him.

"What are those spiders, anyway?" he asked.

"Skulltulas," Tatl responded. "They won't attack us if we don't go under them." Erik nodded. They reached the other end of the bridge. True to Tatl's word, the Skulltulas stayed up by the ceiling. Link opened the door and they proceeded into the next room. They were on a high platform that had a ramp that led down to the lower portion of the room. There was a huge pool of water down below, and a large wooden shrine-like structure rested in the center of it, surrounded by three huge, toothed flowers that were floating on the water. "Yuck!" Tatl exclaimed. "It smells terrible in here!"

"It's the water," Link said. "It's even more poisoned than the water outside." Link walked down the ramp to the lower level. Erik did not follow. Instead, he glared down at one of the flowers resting on the water's surface. "Erik?" Link asked, looking up at him.

"Don't step onto those flowers," Erik warned. Link nodded, and Erik went down the ramp to join him.

"There's a door on the other side of the room," Tatl said. "Link, you can put on the Deku Mask and get there, but I don't know how Erik can do it without either stepping on one of those flowers or swimming."

"That's not a good thing," Link said. He pulled out his Deku Mask and put it on. "I can't carry you over there," he said once he was a Deku. "What are you going to do?" Erik thought for a moment.

"I'll go back onto the higher platform," he said. "I'll jump off of it into the water. That way, I'll have less of a distance to swim."

"Good luck," Link said before jumping out onto the water. Due to his light weight, he was able to ride on the water's surface tension and make it to the other side of the room without ever going into it. "Try to get as close to here as you can," he yelled up to Erik, who had returned to the higher level while he had been crossing the room.

"Indeed," Erik said, more to himself than to Link. He looked down briefly at the area he was aiming for before leaping off the edge of the platform. He landed in the water beside the lower platform and seized the edge as quickly as he could. The water felt normal enough, but Erik quickly noticed that his vision had begun to swim in and out of focus. He pulled himself out of the water and onto the platform, shaking slightly.

"You alright?" Tatl asked, flying next to his head. Erik nodded, panting slightly.

"Let's go," he said as he stood up. Link removed the Deku Mask and opened the door to the next room. Once they were inside, the door locked itself behind them.

"That's not good," Link said.

"What just happened?" Erik asked.

"The door just locked behind us."

"Well that's just great! And there're no doors out of the room but that one!"

"I've been in these situations before," Link said. "It's nothing to worry about. There is something we must do in this room before the door will unlock. Usually it's defeating something or another."

"Like that thing right there?" Erik asked, motioning toward a dinosaur-like creature that had just dropped down out of the leaf-coated ceiling.

"Yeah. Like that," Link responded. "Tatl, what is it?"

"It's a Dinofos," she said. "It breathes fire, so watch out."

"Thanks for the warning," Link said. "Let's get this over with." Link lunged at the Dinofos, which leapt into the air, landing on the other side of Link. It drew in a breath, preparing to shoot fire at Link, but it never got the chance to. In less than a second, it was laying on the floor, its neck broken by a cord of braided cat-gut that Erik had just wrapped around its neck. With a flick of his wrist, the cords loosened and Erik collected it back up and stored it in his cloak.

"Impressive," Tatl remarked.

"What was that?" Link asked.

"The Punjab Lasso," Erik answered. "A very fast and very deadly weapon." Link looked down at the dead Dinofos for a second before responding.

"I can see that…" The Dinofos vanished in a wisp of blue flames, leaving a small wooden bow and a full quiver of arrows in its place. Link picked them up. "This will come in handy." He put the bow and arrows away. As he did, the door unlocked. They left the room and returned to the room with the poisoned water. Link took out the bow and nocked (?) an arrow. He took aim at something on the other side of the room and fired the arrow. There was a clicking sound, and a ladder appeared beside Link.

"I'm not even going to ask," Erik said, following Link up the ladder.

"Temples like these are full of this kind of stuff," Link said as he waited for Erik to finish climbing the ladder. "You just have to get used to it."

It seemed like they had been in the temple for hours. They went into room after room, getting attacked by various creatures, each one more bizarre to Erik than the last. Several of the rooms had the poisoned water in them, making the whole temple reek with the smell of it.

Finally, they reached a room unlike the others. "This is it," Link said. "This is the final room in this temple."

"How do you know?" Erik asked.

"The size of it," Link answered. "And the fact that there is nothing here…yet." Erik looked around the room. Link was right. It was larger than any of the other rooms, and it was entirely empty except for them.

"What do we do now?" Erik asked. Link shrugged.

"The boss will appear when it is ready," Link responded. "Until then, we just have to wait."

"What do you mean by 'boss'?"

"The main creature of the temple. The one that has been causing all of the trouble." Link paused. "It's coming. Listen." Erik listened hard. He could hear the faint sounds of drums coming from the high ceiling.

"What is-" he didn't have enough time to finish his sentence before a large, humanoid creature with strange markings, a huge sword and shield, and a wooden mask fell from the ceiling and landed in the center of the room. It waved the sword around a few times, trying to intimidate them.

"The Masked Jungle Warrior: Odolwa," Tatl said, gazing at the newcomer in awe as he continued to show off. "He's the main deity of the Dekus. Why would he turn against them and kidnap their princess?"

"Majora must have influenced him," Link said. "We have to get rid of him immediately." Odolwa stopped waving his sword around and glared at Link, his red eyes glowing menacingly.

"Well, we aren't going to accomplish anything by just standing around here," Erik said. He walked toward Odolwa, reaching inside his cloak for the Punjab Lasso. Odolwa watched him with interest, as though he were amused by Erik. Once he was close enough, Erik sent the Punjab Lasso at Odolwa, but Odolwa raised his shield. The cat-gut cord wrapped around his neck and shield, causing no damage to him. Erik cursed and detached the lasso. Odolwa took the opportunity to rush at Erik. He hit Erik hard with his shield, sending him flying across the room. He ran after Erik with his sword raised, but Link got in the way and blocked the attack with his shield.

"You aren't getting anywhere near him," Link declared, rushing at Odolwa to attack his legs. Odolwa tried to slash Link, but he blocked the attack again. He swiped at Odolwa, making a deep gash in his left leg. Odolwa staggered back a few steps and Link went in for another attack, but Odolwa slashed at him again. Link blocked it, but Odolwa kicked his shield, knocking him roughly to the ground and sending his shield flying. _Oh no, _he thought. Odolwa raised his sword preparing to kill Link, but was stopped in his tracks when a knife came out of nowhere and buried itself in his neck. Odolwa let out a choked gasp, falling to his knees as blood poured from the wound. He collapsed a few seconds later, vanishing in a wisp of blue flames, leaving behind the knife that had killed him and his mask.

Erik walked over to the knife and picked it up. He put it back in his cloak and turned to Link. "Are you alright?" he asked. Link nodded. Erik helped him up. "Now what do we do?"

"We get this," he said as he picked up the mask. As soon as he put the mask away, a blue light appeared in the center of the room. "Now, we go into that blue light."

"What will that do?" Erik asked.

"You'll see." Link walked into the light and Erik followed him apprehensively. There was a strange tingling sensation, blackness, and then Link and Erik found themselves in a small room with a female Deku sitting in the corner.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Link. This is Erik," Link answered. "We're here to take you back to your father."

"Did you talk to the monkey?" she asked Link. He nodded. "You smell a bit like him. Is my father worried about me?"

"Very," Link responded. "He'll be happy to know that you're safe." She laughed.

"For a moment, I thought that he would blame the monkey for my disappearance. He might have even gone so far as to punish the poor monkey, but that's ridiculous!" Link and Erik glanced at each other and said nothing. "He didn't, did he?"

"Actually, he did," Link said. "Or, at least, he plans to." The Deku Princess's eyes flashed with rage.

"There you go again, father! Always acting rashly!" She looked hopefully up at Link. "You need to take me there, quickly!"

"Where's the door?" Erik asked.

"Behind the vines, but I can't cut them," she replied. Link drew his sword and cut the vines, revealing a doorway.

"Let's go," he said. They ran out of the room and found themselves back in the swamp. They ran along the path and arrived at the Deku Palace a few minutes later. They ran past the guards and into the throne room.

"Daughter!" the King cried when he saw her.

"Hello, father," she said, glaring at him. "Let the monkey go this instant!" she ordered the servants, who hastened to obey their angry princess. A moment later, the monkey was free.

"So, the monkey had nothing to do with this?" the King asked. The princess shook her head. "Oh, well then, um…sorry."

"You'd better be!" she snapped at him. "Your rash actions would have cost an innocent monkey his life! If Link and Erik didn't save me, that is. Thanks to both of you."

"Thank you very much!" the monkey added.

"No problem," Link replied. "We were happy to help." Erik nodded in agreement. "You wouldn't happen to have heard anything about a masked Skull Kid causing trouble around here, would you?"

"As a matter of fact," the monkey said, "I saw a Skull Kid with a mask hanging around Woodfall when the Princess was captured by the monster of the temple."

"So Majora was behind this," Tatl said to Link, furious. "I swear, I have no idea how I ever became his friend. With all the trouble he's causing now…It's ridiculous."

"At least the water is back to normal, now," Link pointed out. To the Princess, he said, "It was a real pleasure meeting you, but we must leave. We are trying to stop the Skull Kid from destroying this place."

"You're welcome back any time," she replied with a small bow. "Good luck."

"Thank you." With that, Link, Tatl, and Erik left the Deku Palace. Back in the boat, Erik decided to get some answers.

"You mentioned a 'Skull Kid' back there," he said. "What is a 'Skull Kid.'?"

"A Skull Kid is what is made when a child dies in a forest," Link explained. "They don't like adults and like to cause trouble. The Skull Kid that is causing the trouble here is possessed by a mask that is known as Majora's Mask."

"Describe the mask," Erik said, getting a sudden suspicion.

"It's heart-shaped, mostly purple, two large orange eyes, and has ten yellow spikes. Why?"

"It was the Skull Kid with that mask that brought me here," Erik said.

"I figured as much. It's because of him that I'm here, too."

"What did he do to get you here?"

"I was searching for one of my friends in a forest. Two fairies came across my path," he looked at Tatl accusingly, "and startled my horse."

"Whoopsies," Tatl squeaked. Link grinned at her with a 'just kidding' shrug.

"Anyways, my horse reared up, and I was knocked unconscious. When I woke up, the Skull Kid was looking through my things. He hadn't noticed that I was awake, and I asked him what he was looking for. He hid my ocarina behind his back, and I told him to put it back. He decided not to, and jumped onto my horse and started to gallop away. I grabbed onto the saddle and was dragged for a while before. I finally let go. I followed after the Skull Kid, and wound up in a cave.

"The Skull Kid was in the cave, too. He told me that he had gotten rid of my horse since it wouldn't listen to him, and he used that mask to put a curse on me, changing me into a Deku. After three days as a Deku, I confronted the Skull Kid at the top of the Clock Tower, got my ocarina back, played that song I mentioned earlier, and I went back to the beginning of the three days. It was a good thing, too. The moon was about to crash.

"I was still stuck as a Deku, but I had the means to break the curse. I met with the man who originally owned Majora's Mask and he taught me the song that I used to turn the curse into a mask." Link pulled out the Deku Mask. "When I put this mask on, I return to being a Deku."

"Sounds like you've had your share of difficulties with the Skull Kid," Erik commented. Link nodded as he put the mask away. The boat had just reached the shore. They climbed out of it and left the swamp. They walked along the path that they had taken to get there—this time Erik killed the Deku Baba before it was able to attack him—and they ended up back in the field. "Where are we going to, now?"

"To the mountain," Link explained. "It'll take us a while to get there." As he said that, the ground shuddered.

"Earthquake?"

"From the moon."

"We have only 18 hours until it'll fall," Tatl pointed out. "We're running out of time."

"How long will it take for us to reach the mountain?" Erik asked.

"Half of that time, at least," she responded. "We may not have enough time to get through the temple, even if we are able to find it in that time."

"We might as well start the three days over right now," Link said, pulling out the powder blue ocarina. "At least then we'll have enough time to get everything done over there." Link put the mouthpiece of the ocarina to his lips and played a short tune. The world around them swirled. When everything had returned to normal, it was the dawn of the first day again.

"The moon is much farther away than it was before," Erik pointed out. Link nodded.

"We've gone back in time a couple days. Come on. We need to get to the mountain."

* * *

Love it? Hate it? Have any comments? Constructive criticism, maybe? Please review! If you wish to flame, go ahead. Just don't be too mean about it if you feel the need to. I'll just have to send Erik after you if you do.

Erik: No kidding.

Review!


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